According to the United Daily News on Oct. 9, Chiang Wan-an of the Kuomintang, who is seeking re-election in the late-November local elections, pledged at a policy-vision event on Oct. 8 to relocate Songshan Airport and free up about 300 hectares for a "Taipei AI Park." He said that "a decisive moment calls for a pioneering decision" and urged central and local governments to work together.

Under the plan, the 300 hectares would be split into 100 hectares for an AI industry cluster, 90 hectares for an international sustainable-living district, and 110 hectares for a central green park. A further 570 hectares of designated renewal zones now constrained by flight-height limits would also be opened up, lifting tech development across eight cities and counties in northern Taiwan. The city's Department of Economic Development estimates NT$12 trillion in output, about twice the city's current total, with 65,000 jobs and 35,000 residents forming a community of at least 100,000.

"No Land Left After Nvidia"

Chiang said Nvidia chose the Beitou-Shilin Technology Park (Beishike), but only lots T3, T4 and T12 remain there and the city has no industrial land larger than one hectare to offer investors, hence the need for a large site. The report adds that the city also assessed land south of Songshan Airport when it was searching for a site for Nvidia's overseas headquarters.

On replacing the airport's role, he said Taoyuan Airport's Terminal 3 opens next year and a third runway is due in 2033, enough to absorb Songshan's traffic, with the trip from Taipei to Taoyuan taking about 36 minutes by elevated road and airport MRT. Relocation has been discussed for over a decade, he said, but the AI era and Nvidia's arrival change the timing.

The main obstacle cited by observers is that more than half of the land belongs to the Ministry of National Defense. Chiang replied that defense needs cannot be avoided, but drones no longer need traditional runways and Songshan has no fighter wing, mostly handling executive aircraft; he said he is willing to review the matter with the defense and transport ministries and civil aviation authorities.

Center Voices Surprise, Industry Sees Upside

Executive Yuan spokesperson Lee Hui-chih said Chiang had said four years ago that land-use planning must be handled prudently and not rushed during an election, and that the Executive Yuan was surprised the city had not discussed this with the central government. Deputy Transportation Minister Chen Yen-po said the city had put forward no related plan in four years and that Songshan matters greatly for air transport, outlying islands and eastern Taiwan. Deputy Interior Minister Ma Shih-yuan said the National Airborne Service Corps based at Songshan covers search and rescue for northern Taiwan, which would become very difficult without the base.

Democratic Progressive Party candidate Wayne Shen (Puma Shen) said relocation has long been discussed across party lines and involves military land and the Songshan command, and that since the airport lies in Chiang's former legislative district he questions what preparations the mayor made over the past decade. DPP legislator Yang Yao of Penghu called the proposal "a desperate move" and questioned joking about national security and outlying-island transport; the green camp broadly worries about a lack of supporting measures.

The blue camp and industry were largely positive. Lai Cheng-yi, chairman of Hsiang Lin Group, said the issue should be raised to a national-strategy level for joint evaluation. Chen Ping-chen, spokesperson for Zhuzhan magazine, said removing height limits and noise could speed renewal of older housing such as in the Minsheng community, with premium homes on Dunhua North and Minsheng roads possibly exceeding NT$2 million per ping. KMT legislator Chen Yu-jen of Kinmen said outlying-island residents care most about seat availability and that flight allocation and transfer arrangements must be sound if flights move to Taoyuan.

The idea is not the property of any one party. The United Daily News notes that both Chen Shui-bian and Ko Wen-je supported relocation. Chang Ching-sen, who headed the city's urban development bureau under Chen, said many opportunities have been missed but the idea is still worth revisiting and positions should not change with politics. Ko said military use must be clarified first, followed by access to Taoyuan Airport.

In the same report, Chiang said this is the toughest campaign he has faced and accused the whole DPP of "ganging up" on him. A new TVBS poll puts Chiang at 49 percent and Shen at 41 percent. How the airport proposal affects the race, and whether talks with the central government actually begin, remain to be seen.